Cotton and othee fibers



(No Model.) '2 SheetsSheet 1 J.- O. POTTER. MACHINE FOR OPENING ANDCLEANING GOTTON AND OTHER FIBERS.

Patented July 7, 1885..

, (No Model.) 2. Sheets-Sheet 2. J. 0. POTTER.

MACHINE FOE OPENING AND CLEANING COTTON AND OTHER FIBERS. No. 321,852.Patented July 7, 1885.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES C. POTTER, OF LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO THE ATHERTONMACHINE COMPANY, OF SAME PLACE.

MACHINE FOR OPENING AND CLEANING COTTON AND OTHER FIBERS.

SPEGIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 321,852, dated July1885- Applioation filed April 1, 1885. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES C. POTTER, of Lowell, in the county ofMiddlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented a certain new anduseful Improvement in Machines for Opening and Cleaning Cotton and otherFibers, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to machines for opening and cleaning cotton andother fibers.

\Vil-h a view to preventing the material operated on-by the beater oropening-cylinder from sticking or gathering upon the same, and toassisting the proper passage of the ma terial through the machine, ithas heretofore in several instances been proposed to make the interioror center of the beater hollow, to provide at the ends of the samepassages communicating with the external air, and to perforate or slitthe interior or center of the beater, so that the external air taken i11 through the inlet-passages might escape from or be discharged throughthe interior perforations of the beater. Under this arrangement it isdesirable to provide some means for varying the supply of air taken in,in order to insure the proper passage of the fibers from the beater tothe collecting-cages under all conditions. Some material may need moreair than others; and, again, the condition of the atmosphere must beconsulted-for instance, more air is needed on a damp day than when theatmos phere is dry. To this end I control the admission of the externalair by one or more registers or gates applied to the inlet or inlets insuch manner that the latter may be opened more or less, according tocircumstances.

Again, it not nnfrequently occurs that the machine makes what may becalled a tapering lap -that is to say, the fibers composing the lap aremore compacted and solid toward one edge of the lap than the other. Thisis attributable to unevenness in the air current or draft, the airpassing in greater quantity or with greater force on one side of themachine than on the other. For example, if the opener stand broadside ofan open window,

the lap on the side next to the window is likely to be more compact thanit is on the side farthest removed from the window. To c0rrect thisdifficulty, I admit air to both ends of the perforated center of thebeater, and I provide at each end a register or gate, each of which canbe operated independently of the other. I can thus regulate the volumesof air taken in at each end, and by varying these volumes with'relationto each other can readily correct irregularities due to the cause abovementioned.

This improvement is applicable to heaters of any type. In illustrationof the invention I have in the accompanying drawings represented it asapplied to a cotton-opener of the Whitehead and Atherton type, such asdescribed in Patent No. 240,484, having what is known as awhipper-beater.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of so much of the machine as needed for thepurpose of explanation. Fig. 2 is a vertical axial section on enlargedscale of the whipper-beater, its end bearings, and the parts adjacentthereto, the central portion of the beater being broken away so as toshorten the figure, and the shaft being shown in elevation. Fig. 3 is aside elevation enlarged of the upper portion of the whipper beater case(including the hinged cover) and the register applied thereto.

In Figs. 1 and 3 a portion of the registerplate It is broken away. Themachine itself is similar in its general features to the first sectionof that described in. the Letters Patent above named, and requires nodetailed description here. It is sufficient to say that A is thefeed-apron. B are the feed-rolls. C is the case containing the beater,(indicated in dotted lines,) and D is the grid-passage leading from thebeater-case to the collecting-cages E. Both D and E are represented indotted lines.

My improvement is illustrated more y in Figs. 2 and 3. Thewhipper-beater in this instance is the Whitehead and Athertonwhipper-beater described in Reissued Patent No. 7,159, consisting of theheads a fast to shaft d, and connected by rods 1), on which are hung thewhippers c. The perforated center, from which the air is discharged,consists of the perforated metal shell or cylinder 6, extending betweenthe two heads, a, with itsi'ends received within annular flanges f, castupon the interior opposite faces of the heads, to which flanges thecylinder is fastened by bolts or other suitable means. In those parts ofthe heads included within the compass of the cylinder 0 are formed airpassages or openings Upon the exterior face of each head is formed anannular flange, h, which, in effect, constitutes a prolongation of theperforated center 0, and is received and tits within an annular flange,t, formed on the interior opposite face of the adjoining portion of thecase or frame 0. This flange is formed the lower half on the case andthe upper half on the cover C, so that the upper half will lift with thecover. In that portion of the case or cover-in this instance thecover-ineluded within the compass of the flange 17 are formedair-admission openings 7', similar to those of an ordinary register. Airentering through these openings travels through the passage formed bythe flange 6 and openings 1 into the perforated center 0, whence it isdischarged continuously from all the perforations therein. To controlthe air admission, I provide each set of openings with a register orgate of any suitable kind. The register consists in this instance of theplate 7;, with register-openings corresponding to those in the cover 0,said plate having a half-round or semicircular concave bearing edge,which is seated and adapted to turn in an annular groove formed for itin the hub or projecting portion of the bearing of shaft (1. In this waywhile the register-plate is centered with respect to the shaft, thelatter can revolve without affecting the plate, and the latter can liftwith the cover or can be readily put on and taken off, as desired. Atthe top of the register-plate is a central tongue or prolongation, 7;,through which screws a set or clamping-screw, Z, which serves at once toclamp the register in place and as a handle for moving it. The set-screwscrews into a slide, 9)), held in asmall curved slotted guide-piece, or,

attached to the cover in proper position. By tightening the screw theregister will be locked in place, and when the screw is loosened theregister can be adjusted to close or open more or less the openings j,as desired. The registers at each end are the same, so that adescription of one will answer for both. Each register can be adjustedindependently of the other, so that the supply of air to each end of thebeater can be varied as desired.

I have described one way of carrying my improvement into effect; but itis obvious that the mechanical details can be widely varied withoutdeparture from the invention. \Vhat is essential is that the air inletor inlets should be controlled by a register, gate, valve, or the likein such manner as to regulate the volume of air admitted to theperforated ecu ter of the beater.

\Vhat, therefore, I claim as new and of my own invention is as follows:

1. The combination, with the beater provided with a perforated hollowcenter and an inlet through which the external air is admitted to theinterior of the perforated center, of means, substantially as described,whereby said inlet maybe opened or closed more or less, as desired,substantially as and for the purposes hereinbeforc set forth.

2. The combination, with the beater having a perforated hollow center,of an air-inlet at each end of the beater through which external ai r isadmitted to the hollow center, and an independent register, or itsequivalent, for each of said inlets, substantially as and for thepurposes hereinbefore set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 26th day of March,1885.

JAMES C. POTTER.

\Vitnesses:

A. T. ATHERTON, E. E. RIPLEY.

